Fracking in the German Press: Securing Energy Supply on the Eve of The ‘Energiewende’ – A Quantitative Framing-Based Analysis

Abstract

ABSTRACTIn many countries worldwide, unconventional hydraulic fracturing (also known as fracking) is considered a natural steppingstone toward the use of renewable energies against the backdrop of climate change. Although commercial drilling for shale gas has not yet begun in Germany, the public discourse appears to be creating more controversy than in other European countries. Based on the theoretical concept of “framing,” we conducted a quantitative empirical study from January 2013 to December 2014 analyzing the coverage of fracking in three highly influential newspapers and political magazines in Germany. The results of this study provide the first insights into the discussion of fracking in the German news media and allow comparisons to the debate in other European countries. We found that fracking is mainly discussed in the economic context of securing the future energy supply while the potential risks of the technique are mostly ignored. We discuss our findings and try to explain the unbalanced reporting.